First ascent in the context of "Frederick Gardiner (mountaineer)"

Lead climbing (or leading) is a technique in rock climbing where two climbers work together to ascend a climbing route. The 'lead climber' — who is doing the climbing — clips the rope to pieces of protection as they ascend. The 'second' (or 'belayer') stands at the base of the route controlling the other end of the rope, which is called belaying (e.g. if the 'lead climber' falls, the 'second' locks the rope). The term distinguishes between the two roles and the greater effort and increased risk of the role of the 'lead climber'.

Leading a route is in contrast with the alternative climbing technique of top roping, where even though there is still a 'second' belaying the rope, the 'lead climber' faces no risk in the event of a fall and does not need to clip into any protection as the rope is already anchored to the top of the route (e.g. if they fall they will just hang from the static rope). Leading a climbing route is a core activity in rock climbing, and first ascents (FA) and first free ascents (FFA) of new routes must be done via lead climbing.

Melchior Anderegg (28 March 1828 – 8 December 1914), from Zaun, Meiringen, was a Swiss mountain guide and the first ascensionist of many prominent mountains in the western Alps during the golden and silver ages of alpinism. His clients were mostly British, the most famous of whom was Leslie Stephen, the writer, critic and mountaineer; Anderegg also climbed extensively with members of the Walker family, including Horace Walker and Lucy Walker, and with Florence Crauford Grove. His cousin Jakob Anderegg was also a well-known guide.

The Grandes Jorasses (French pronunciation: [ɡʁɑ̃d ʒɔʁas]; 4,208 m; 13,806 ft) is a mountain in the Mont Blanc massif, on the boundary between Haute-Savoie in France and Aosta Valley in Italy.

The first ascent of the highest peak of the mountain (Pointe Walker) was by Horace Walker with guides Melchior Anderegg, Johann Jaun and Julien Grange on 30 June 1868. The second-highest peak on the mountain (Pointe Whymper, 4,184 m; 13,727 ft) was first climbed by Edward Whymper, Christian Almer, Michel Croz and Franz Biner on 24 June 1865, using what has become the normal route of ascent and the one followed by Walker's party in 1868.

The first ascent of the Matterhorn was a mountaineering expedition of the Matterhorn made by Edward Whymper, Lord Francis Douglas, Charles Hudson, Douglas Hadow, Michel Croz, and two Zermatt guides, Peter Taugwalder and his son of the same name, on 14 July 1865. Douglas, Hudson, Hadow and Croz were killed on the descent when Hadow slipped and pulled the other three with him down the north face. Whymper and the Taugwalder guides, who survived, were later accused of having cut the rope below to ensure that they were not dragged down with the others, but the subsequent inquiry found no evidence of this and they were acquitted.

The ascent followed a long series of usually separate attempts by Edward Whymper and Jean-Antoine Carrel to reach the summit. Carrel's group had been 200 m below the summit on the Italian side when Croz and Whymper summited. The climbers from Valtournenche withdrew deflated, but three days later Carrel and Jean-Baptiste Bich reached the summit without incident. The Matterhorn was the last great Alpine peak to be climbed and its first ascent marked the end of the golden age of alpinism.

The golden age of alpinism was the decade in mountaineering between Alfred Wills's ascent of the Wetterhorn in 1854 and Edward Whymper's ascent of the Matterhorn in 1865, during which many major peaks in the Alps saw their first ascents.

Rock climbing is a climbing sports discipline that involves ascending routes consisting of natural rock in an outdoor environment, or on artificial resin climbing walls in a mostly indoor environment. Routes are documented in guidebooks, and on online databases, detailing how to climb the route (called the beta), and who made the first ascent (or FA) and the coveted first free ascent (or FFA). Climbers will try to ascend a route onsight, however, a climber can spend years projecting a route before they make a redpoint ascent.

Routes range from a few metres to over a 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) in height, and traverses can reach 4,500 metres (14,800 ft) in length. They include slabs, faces, cracks and overhangs/roofs. Popular rock types are granite (e.g. El Capitan), limestone (e.g. Verdon Gorge), and sandstone (e.g. Saxon Switzerland) but 43 types of climbable rock types have been identified. Artificial indoor climbing walls are popular and competition climbing — which takes place on artificial walls — became an Olympic sport in 2020.

Many climbing routes have grades for the technical difficulty, and in some cases for the risks, of the route. The first ascensionist can suggest a grade but it will be amended for the consensus view of subsequent ascents. While many countries with a tradition of climbing developed their own grading systems, a small number of grading systems have become internationally dominant for each type of climbing, and which has led to the standardization of grading worldwide. Over the years, grades have consistently risen in all forms of climbing, helped by improvements in climbing technique and equipment.

In free climbing (i.e. climbing rock routes with no aid), the most popular grading systems are the French numerical or sport system (e.g. 7c+), the American YDS system (e.g. 5.13a), and latterly the UIAA scale (e.g. IX+). These systems grade technical difficulty being the main focus of the lower-risk activity of sport climbing. The American system adds an R/X suffix to traditional climbing routes to reflect the additional risks of climbing protection. Notable traditional climbing systems include the British E-grade system (e.g. E4 6a).

A climbing route (German: Kletterrouten) is a path by which a climber reaches the top of a mountain, a rock-face, or an ice-covered obstacle. Climbing routes are recorded in a climbing guidebooks and/or in online climbing-route databases. Details recorded include the type of climbing route (e.g. bouldering route, sport climbing route, traditional climbing route, ice climbing route, or alpine climbing route, etc.), the difficulty grade of the route–and the beta for its crux(es)–including any risk or commitment-grade, the length and number of pitches of the route, and the climbing equipment (e.g. climbing protection gear) that is needed to complete the route.

Definitions have been agreed on what determines a valid ascent of a route (e.g. the redpoint in rock climbing), and on the classes or styles of ascent (e.g. onsighted, flashed). The coveted first ascent (FA), first free ascent (FFA), and first female free ascent (FFFA), are chronicled for most routes. After a route is established, variations can be created (e.g. directessimas, sit starts, or enchainments), and climbers will try to improve on the style in which the route is climbed (e.g. minimizing aid climbing or removing other supports such as oxygen or fixed ropes). Some climbers will try to reduce or limit the in-situ climbing protection (e.g. greenpointing) or will try to completely free-solo the route. Others seek to set speed climbing records on routes.